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New gPhone (myTouch 3G) Coming in Early August

Jeremy Muncy — Mon, 22 Jun 2009 17:40:51 +0000

T-Mobile has announced that the sucessor to it’s semi-popular G1, the myTouch 3G, will become available in early August.

The myTouch 3G will be extremely customizable, unlike Apple’s iPhone. Users will be able to choose menus, wallpapers, icons, themes and skins. Will being customizable be enough to lure iPhone users away?

Has the myTouch 3G already lost to the iPhone, even before its release? Tell us what you think.

The phone will come in three colors: black, white and ~~maroon~~ … err… sorry, I meant distinctive "Merlot". (Why is Merlot a distinctive color?)

A new exclusive app that T-Mobile is hyping is called Sherpa. Below is some detailed info…

Created by Geodelic, Sherpa features GENIE (Geodelic ENgine for Interest Evaluation), a learning engine that automatically customizes itself to the user’s preferences. Through behavior and user feedback, the application learns a person’s likes and dislikes, prioritizing recommended retailers, restaurants and attractions. Seamlessly blending behavior recognition, a recommendation engine and location relevant information, this combination of learning is exclusive to Sherpa and unlike any experience currently on the market.

Below are two lists, the specs and Google services offered on the new myTouch 3G…

3.2-inch HVGA touch-screen
Virtual keyboard (portrait or landscape)
3.2 megapixel camera
Music player (pre-installed 4GB microSD card)
Enhanced video capabilities
Google Search
Google Maps (with Street View)
YouTube
Picasa
Gmail
Google Talk

Sure, the myTouch 3G sounds good on paper… but how, or will, it compete with the iPhone? Ali asked this question the other day, and got some pretty good feedback.

This will be the true test for T-Mobile.

If you’re interested in the myTouch 3G, T-Mobile will begin taking pre-sales on July 8th. The phone itself will be released in early August.

Gphone Already Sold Out!

Jordan McCollum — Thu, 02 Oct 2008 21:44:03 +0000

It’s been just over a week since T-Mobile premiered the G1, the first cell phone with Google’s Android OS. Although the phone won’t be available for three more weeks, T-Mobile has already sold all of its preorder units.

That’s right, folks. The Gphone is sold out.

Of course, T-Mobile most likely set aside a significant number of G1s to be sold direct in stores. One report cited by Business Week said that T-Mobile expects to sell up to half a million G1s this quarter. Their order with the phone’s maker, HTC, naturally, is for a much higher number: 1.5 to 2 million.

As Unwired View points out, two million isn’t a whole lot compared to the iPhone’s early predictions (10 million). But considering the amount of competition we’ll be likely to see among Android handsets, it’s probably plenty.

No other companies have yet premiered Android-based phones, but rumors abound about many in the works. Allegedly, five other cell phone makers are working on Gphones—possibly including Samsung, LG, and Motorola. Qualcomm is supposed to definitely be one of the other makers.

The world’s largest mobile phone manufacturer, (do you even have to ask?) Nokia, however, appears to be going in a different direction: the new Nokia Tube, also an iPhone competitor, comes with a large touch screen—and bundled subscription music download service. The Tube, like other Nokia phones, will most likely run Java ME apps.

What do you think: will the G1, the Tube or another Gphone be the iPhone killer—or none of the above?

Comments

The Android Phone T-Mobile G1

Philipp Lenssen — Tue, 23 Sep 2008 20:53:34 +0000

T-Mobile’s G1 phone was officially announced today. It’s going to be the first mobile phone based on Android, the Google-and-partners powered (and supposedly soon to be open source released) mobile operating system. T-Mobile says the phone has a touch screen, a keyboard, and includes different Google apps, like Google Maps or Gmail, with data synchronization features to Google’s tools. The HTC-built G1 comes with a 3-megapixel camera and is wi-fi enabled. It’s also connected to Amazon’s DRM-free MP3 music store, and an Android applications directory. The back of the phone has the Google logo on it.

According to T-Mobile, the phone will be available in the US on October 22 for a price of $179 with a two-year contract. It will then be available in the UK in November, and across Europe in the first quarter of 2009, T-Mobile says.

There’s an introductory promotional video tour available, and several other videos at YouTube show off some of the features of the G1. Walt Mossberg reviews this iPhone competitor with further details. Walt writes, “Most importantly, the G1 complements its touch screen with a physical keyboard, the lack of which has made the iPhone a non-starter for some users. The G1’s keyboard is revealed when you slide open its screen. The keys are a bit flat, and you have to reach your right thumb around a bulging portion of the phone’s body to type, but it’s a real keyboard. (…) A second big feature, or limitation, of the G1 – depending on your point of view – is that it is tightly tied to Google’s web-based email, contacts and calendar programs. In fact, you must have a Google … account to use the phone, and can only synchronize the phone’s calendar and address book with Google online services. Unlike the iPhone, it doesn’t work with Microsoft Exchange, and it can’t physically be synced with a PC-based calendar or contacts program, like Microsoft Outlook.”

[Photos by T-Mobile. Hat tip to Search Engine Land, Google OS, Abhisshek, Dpic and everyone who provided comments!]

Comments

Security Around the Gphone & Iphone

Dan Morrill — Fri, 09 Nov 2007 20:44:09 +0000

With the open handset alliance, the scrutiny for Linux based cell phone operating systems is once again something that security engineers need to think about.

Hacking the Linux kernel is nothing new, and bugs or out right malicious code in open source or closed source software is also nothing new. Security engineers though need to take a look at what is being brought into the enterprise, and like all systems that plug into the network, figure out what is going to be the best way to handle the inherent risks of plugging anything into the network.

The war between device hackers and Apple is going to continue, that is a reality, so every time some group or another unlocks the cell phone, apple is going to come up with a counter measure. While this is good from the device security viewpoint (nothing better than having a system compromised or unlocked to get you to start thinking about security) with the back and forth you end up with a more secure device in the longer run.

Taking a look at the open source code in the Google Phone (Gphone) alliance is also something that is going to get a lot of scrutiny, not just from the Google alliance (and Google has a very good track record of security), but from everyone who is going to be looking at and working on the code.

In a few short words, the odds that malicious code making it into the Google gphone alliance is probably going to remain the same as it is now with either closed or open source material. If anything, people will make and break code with the same wild abandon that they do now. The real risk is a system wide issue like seen with the early symbian phones.

This is something that every device has, and something that mobile security and policy will provide guidance overall for the company. Given what is currently known about the systems, the focus has been more on unlocking the systems rather than injecting evil code into the phones. From a risk viewpoint, there is little to no difference between what you are doing now against what is required for any other modern cell phone that connects to the internet, has MP3s, and all the rest of the things that cell phones seem to do now.

Without an increase in material risk that is already faced by every single mobile device out there, it is important then to make sure that folks do not start trying to sell a company snake oil that promises to somehow cure all your mobile worries. If you already have policy, NAC, AV, and all the other things that mobile devices need, then you don’t need to do anything other than what you are doing now. While it is best to upgrade those systems, if you have a solution in place, there is no need to come up with something new to work with some unspecified threat that is meant to create FUD and sell more stuff.

Comments

Google Finally Announcing Cell Phone Project Today

Andy Beal — Mon, 05 Nov 2007 17:21:21 +0000

UPDATE: The announcement is now confirmed, please see below.

There are many reports from credible news sources that suggest Google will finally put us all out of our misery and tell us what its mobile initiative actually is Reuters, USA Today, and CNET are among those with "sources familiar with the matter."

Don’t have time to read all the buzz?

Here’s the 411:

They’re launching a mobile platform based on Linux.

It’s either going to be called "Android" (CNET) or "G-System" (USA Today).

Phone manufacturers on board include Qualcomm, HTC, Samsung, and Motorola. Nokia is conspicuous by its absence.

Wireless carriers signed-up include Sprint, NTT DoCoMo, and T-Mobile. AT&T & Verizon are hesitant to sign on.

The new platform will speed up phones and make them an open platform for developers.

Announcement will come today, actual phones won’t appear until early next year.

It seems Google is frustrated with all the "wall gardens" in the mobile phone industry and hopes that its initiative will open things up sufficiently to allow it a better opportunity to push Google applications. Hmmm, sounds a lot like its reasons for starting OpenSocial, doesn’t it?

UPDATE: We just received the following from Google…

GOOGLE, T-MOBILE, HTC, QUALCOMM AND MOTOROLA TO DISCUSS NEW OPEN PLATFORM FOR MOBILE DEVICES

WHAT:
Industry leaders hold conference call to discuss the development of Android, the first truly open and comprehensive platform for mobile devices, and the announcement of the Open Handset Alliance, a multinational alliance of more than 30 technology and mobile industry leaders.

WHEN:
Monday, November 5, 2007, 9:00am pacific / 12:00 pm eastern

WHO:
The following executives will participate in the call:
Eric Schmidt, Chairman and CEO of Google Inc.
Andy Rubin, Director of Mobile Platforms, Google Inc.
René Obermann, CEO of Deutsche Telekom, parent company of T-Mobile
Peter Chou, CEO of HTC Corp.
Paul Jacobs, CEO of Qualcomm
Ed Zander, Chairman and CEO of Motorola, Inc.

WHY:
With nearly 3 billion users worldwide, the mobile phone has become the most personal and ubiquitous communications device. However, the lack of a collaborative effort has made it a challenge for developers, wireless operators and handset manufacturers to respond as quickly as possible to the ever-changing needs of savvy mobile consumers. Through Android, developers, wireless operators and handset manufacturers will be better positioned to bring to market innovative new products faster and at a much lower cost. The end result will be an unprecedented mobile platform that will enable wireless operators and manufacturers to give their customers better, more personal and more flexible mobile experiences.

CONFERENCE CALL DETAILS:
Toll-free: 800-817-2743
Toll: 913-312-1295
Confirmation Code: Google 8747527

Comments

Gphone Myth (Maybe, Possibly) Not A Myth

WebProNews Staff — Wed, 17 Oct 2007 21:54:12 +0000

Usually Gphone rumors come out of some publication you’ve never heard of in India or Taiwan and are told with questionable, if not outright broken English.

The most recent one though comes from CNNMoney, and is backed up by furious Wall Street speculation that Google is very near to entering the mobile market.

What else are they going to do with all that spectrum they plan on buying? Well, I suppose wireless broadband is also a possibility. It’ll go well with all that dark fiber they own. (And you wonder why Verizon and AT&T don’t like Google much?)

CNNMoney doubles down on a rumor that Taiwanese handset maker HTC will ship 50,000 phones by the end of this year. Don’t get your hopes up though, unless you’re a developer.

An analyst familiar with the matter says the first batch will be for developers only to work the bugs out of the smartphone’s operating system.

Assumedly, Google will reveal more at an October 24th event for analysts. Until then, we raise the Gphone threat level to yellow.

Expect Windows Mobile Alternative Instead of Gphone

Andy Beal — Mon, 08 Oct 2007 21:49:10 +0000

The IHT is pretty convinced we won’t see mobile phone from Google–yeah, we know that already. However, they’ve shed some light on what exactly Google is working on.

It appears the Mountain View search giant is putting together an operating system for mobile phones based on Linux. The open-source software is designed to go head-to-head with Microsoft’s Windows Mobile.

Really? Google launching a Microsoft competitor? How novel!

…unlike Microsoft, Google is not expected to charge phone makers a licensing fee for the software.

“The essential point is that Google’s strategy is to lead the creation of an open-source competitor to Windows Mobile,” said an industry executive, who did not want his name used because his company has had contacts with Google. “They will put it in the open-source world and take the economics out of the Windows Mobile business.”

Sounds like the same strategy used to ~~not~~ compete with Microsoft Office.

Google hopes it’s Windows Mobile alternative will loosen the control held by the major wireless networks. However, some analysts predict a tough battle ahead for Google…

Microsoft, whose mobile operating system has been available for years, has distribution agreements with 48 phone makers and 160 carriers around the world. Still, only 12 million phones sold this year will be based on Microsoft’s software, giving it 10 percent of the smartphone market, according to IDC.

Yeah, and who thought in 1999 there was room for a search engine to take away 58+% market share? Microsoft’s Windows Mobile is hardly a piece of genius. It dominates because there’s a lack of a solid competitor. If Google can launch something half-decent, it’s brand will carry it the rest of the way.

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Tag:

GPhone Is Not a Phone?

Mike Sachoff — Mon, 08 Oct 2007 19:15:00 +0000

Google has been working on a mobile phone project for more than two years and the GPhone has caused expectations in the technology world to rise.

GPhone Is Not a Phone?

Google hopes to capture a larger portion of the mobile Internet and online advertising by convincing wireless carriers and mobile phone makers to offer phones based on its software.

Some experts believe that the Google phone project will not be as innovative initially as the iPhone. "The iPhone was a milestone in terms of how people use a mobile device," Karsten Weide of the research firm IDC told the International Herald Tribune. "The GPhone, if it does come out, will help Google with distribution for their online services."

Most analyst believe that Google is not developing a phone to compete with the iPhone, but is creating software that will provide an option to Windows Mobile from Microsoft and other operating systems. Google is not expected to charge phone makers a licensing fee for the software unlike Microsoft.

"The essential point is that Google’s strategy is to lead the creation of an open-source competitor to Windows Mobile," said an industry executive, who did not want his name used because his company has had contacts with Google. "They will put it in the open-source world and take the economics out of the Windows Mobile business."

Major carriers such as Verizon wireless and AT&T are unlikely to be interested in the Google phone project as they have spent billions building their networks and cresting their own Internet portals. They view Google and other search engines as competitors.

Mahesh Veerina, the founder and chief executive of Celunite, a cellphone software company thinks Google’s offering could be appealing to small carriers, who may view it as another way to compete.

If Google phones are popular with users other carriers could be receptive to the technology said Richard Doherty, director of Envisioneering Group, a consulting firm. He said no one wants to be the last carrier to endorse Google.

Meanwhile, Google Rings Up Zingku

WebProNews Staff — Thu, 27 Sep 2007 23:53:33 +0000

Mobile social network company Zingku nearly flew into Google’s nest under the radar, as Google’s visit to Washington DC attracted plenty of attention.

Maybe the purchase of Zingku was Google’s reminder to search industry observers that the company does do more than visit Capitol Hill to talk about DoubleClick.

Google Operating System spotted the deal. “We’ve entered into an agreement to have Google acquire our Zingku service,” Zingku noted on their site.

Subsequent confirmation arrived at Google Operating System from the Big G itself:

Google confirms the acquisition: “It is true that we acquired certain assets and technology of Zingku. We believe these assets can help build products and features that will benefit our users, advertisers and publishers.”

The Zingku deal comes at an interesting time. It’s widely thought, albeit rumored, that Google has a mobile handset loaded with its services ready to roll out somewhere. If Google is still looking for pieces of the mobile puzzle, maybe that debut isn’t as close to reality as some think.

We still have the view we’ve expressed previously: the GPhone isn’t as important as the network infrastructure that will support it. If Google turns out to be the one to control or mostly control that, offering access at a nominal cost or even free with an ad-supported model, it will be truly disruptive for the wireless industry.

Of course, this is Google’s ninth birthday, so maybe Zingku is just a birthday present for the company. They probably have enough Lego bricks by now.

Gphone Enroute? What About The Network?

WebProNews Staff — Thu, 20 Sep 2007 18:37:30 +0000

Lots of sites have been chattering about the potential for a Google branded handset emerging in the market, but the real news will be when the company lights up a wireless network to support it.

Gphone Enroute? What About The Network?

It could be that Google’s deal with Sprint to provide a portal for users of the forthcoming WiMAX network serves as a harbinger of an offering we’ve been expecting for some time.

There’s plenty of talk about the hardware side, the reputed Gphone. An article on CNet’s Crave blog cited a passel of sources, speculating on whose making the handsets (HTC in Taiwan), what operating system will be on-board (Linux, no shock there), and what applications will be in place (a web browser – gee, ya think?)

The Gphone could emerge tomorrow, descending from heaven in the greatest deus ex machina tradition of Edgar Rice Burroughs, and borne by Adriana Lima and the whole Victoria’s Secret lineup of models. It could run for 60 days of nonstop browsing and talking and texting without needing a recharge, and it still wouldn’t matter.

People can buy a great phone today, or get a very good phone for free, plus the usual service agreements with a wireless carrier. That’s what’s missing from everyone’s fervent speculation: the network.

Back to Sprint and Google. We know Sprint plans to launch WiMAX in a big way. We’re pretty certain a Google-powered portal will be a convenient access point to mobile advertising. We understand Google owns a whole lot of dark fiber; networking capabilities just waiting to be enabled.

Let’s spin it this way, and please let us know what you think in the comment section. Google plugs its dark fiber into Sprint’s WiMAX network. They drop a bunch of Sun’s Project Blackbox datacenters onto strategically selected peering points.

Google pushes content and advertising into the network, which Sprint’s WiMAX service delivers over the “last mile” to people. Thanks to the advertising, Sprint can offer the service at a nominal charge. Google, or Sprint, can do the same for the handset.

In this scenario, Google doesn’t have to handle the icky part of dealing with end users, because Sprint already does that through customer support it has outsourced currently to Affiliated Computer Services. Google just keeps on matching search queries with ads, YouTube videos with ads, content partners with ads, etc.

Of course this all goes out the window if Google and potential partners end up with the 700MHz spectrum going up for auction next year. Our scenario fits all the pieces together. Whether it fits Google and Sprint won’t be known until that Gphone, or maybe Sprint’s WiMAX service, becomes available.